Masashi woke up the next morning, though not feeling in the mood to arise. Nonetheless, he did so, as if obliged, and after he readied himself, he left his room and saw two people standing beside the garden.
"Oh, good morning." It was Faye, who was alongside Takumi. "You definitely took your time to sleep. It's only half an hour before noon."
"What, it is?" Masashi said, remembering that he had not checked the time. He had just assumed that it was early in the morning as usual. "Have I… missed anything?"
"Anything important? Nope, not a bit," Faye answered. "A few hours ago, Maiha and Kasumi finished watching over Sorao and Takumi for the night, and then Haruyuki and I were asked to watch over them two before those two girls went to rest in their own rooms."
"Oh… So where are Haruyuki and Sorao?"
"Up in the dining room, I think," Takumi said. "They seemed like they were talking about something. Sir Haruyuki sure didn't look all too bothered by Sorao."
Faye let out a disgruntled sigh, her lips twisted into a bitter frown, her hands slightly shaking.
"I don't know how Haruyuki can stand that man. Everything about that man is awful, just awful! I can't believe it… He knew about Arashi's scheme and tried to use it to kill Tanjiro… And then he sent me that note about Takumi and played me like a fool! And then, he had the nerve to insult me yesterday evening! I… I cannot stand how much he has humiliated me!"
"I… I'm sorry for saying that about your cooking, Lady Faye," Takumi said pitifully, who held his trusty teddy bear in his hands. "It was Sorao who put me up to it…"
Faye looked none the happier, however, as she glared at him. "There's far too much you should be apologizing for. But I don't want to repeat myself."
Takumi let out a small sigh as he buried his face into his bear. It seemed that he was making little progress in regaining favor from her.
Faye took a deep breath. "Anyway… I've just been wandering around the amusement park with Takumi and playing a few games. Nothing too amazing, wonderful, or memorable. I'm about to head up to cook lunch, so you may as well go with us."
Seeing no reason to decline, Masashi nodded and silently walked with Faye and Takumi up to the dining room. When they entered, they saw Haruyuki and Sorao sitting at one table, and Sayua at another. She was reading a small black book, which appeared to be Tanjiro's diary, which Monokuma had given him yesterday evening. It was unexpected to see her look that focused on it, but Masashi thought little of it.
"Ah, good morning," Haruyuki said, looking quite glad. "I see that you've come at last."
"You look awfully pleased," Faye said.
"He and I have been talking about a few things," Sorao said, looking evenly content. "Small things such as society and mankind."
"Even though we disagree in many places, I've still found it interesting to hear his thoughts," Haruyuki added. "It's not every day that one has the chance to discuss with a… cunning man about his thoughts on human nature."
"'Cunning man', huh?" Sorao said. "Interesting description. Almost makes it sound like you're flattering me."
"I assure you, it's not due to flattery."
Faye sighed, as if having already grown tired of their attitude. "I wish you didn't look so accepting of him, Haruyuki. Don't forget, he tried to kill Tanjiro and Hikari! It was only dumb luck that he managed to live!"
"Aww, upset that things didn't play out your way?" Sorao said with a mocking voice.
"Oh, be quiet!"
Faye stormed off to the kitchen. Takumi followed after her, only for Faye to tell him to stay outside. In response, Takumi shook his head and sat at a nearby table.
"Looks like she hasn't forgotten what he did in her kitchen," Sorao remarked. "Guess she doesn't want to deal with any more disguised poison bottles. I shouldn't want him, either."
Meanwhile, Masashi noticed that Sayua was sitting all alone at a corner table, silently observing what had happened. Though she looked a little annoyed, the rest of her face was colored with apathy.
"How do you feel, Masashi?" Haruyuki asked.
"I'm… all right."
"Hmm, really? Yesterday evening, you suddenly left when Takumi, Kasumi, and I were conversing. You looked a bit… exhausted."
"Once again, I'm fine," Masashi said, feeling a little annoyed.
"If you insist," Haruyuki said, sounding skeptical, though Masashi had not the energy to tell him otherwise again.
Some time later, Faye came out of the kitchen with a tray of food. Just after she set a dish on each table, however, someone leapt in.
"Yoohoo!" It was Kasumi, who looked quite lively and lithe in her movements. "The Ultimate Phantom Thief, Red Mask, is here!"
"Oh! Lady Kasumi!" Takumi keenly rushed over to her side . "I'm so glad you're here!"
"So am I," Sorao added with a soft smile. "You're the prettiest girl aboard this ship, you know."
"Oh, well…" She giggled with an embarrassed look on her face, her cheeks reddening. "N-Nice of you to say that…"
"Ugh… Give me a break…" Sayua muttered, looking as if she were holding back her bile.
"Kasumi, you seem to have been quite charmed by him," Haruyuki added, looking a bit perturbed. "You must remember that he has committed many a misdeed."
"Sure, but I mean, if you'd seen him shirtless, you'd agree with me that he's dreamy…" Kasumi said, looking as if she were about to swoon sooner or later.
"No, I don't think I would, actually," Haruyuki said matter-of-factly with a stern expression. "In any case, I beseech you not to fall for his flattery."
"'Flattery'? Oh, no, no, what I say comes right from the heart. For sure, you're a smoking hot babe, Kasumi," Sorao continued before he looked right back at Kasumi. "You're certainly much pleasanter and more delightful than Maiha can ever be."
"Is that so?"
That irritated voice came from Maiha, who seemed to have just arrived at the dining room. She bore a wrathful countenance, one hand clenched in a fist, the other holding what looked like a plastic bag.
"Oh, you're here!" Sorao said, looking half-surprised. "I didn't expect you to be up already, but then again—"
"Enough. I don't care to hear any more from your foul mouth than it is absolutely necessary," Maiha replied, looking daggers at him.
"May I ask you what's in your hand over there?" Haruyuki said, pointing at her bag.
Maiha raised the bag for all to see. Now, the contents of the bag were visible, and they seemed to be four syringes filled with clear liquid.
"These are tranquilizers," she said. "It is of the same kind that Monokuma used on Takumi in the previous investigation, though apparently, these are less powerful and will not knock one out immediately."
"Where did you get those?" Faye asked.
"I have just asked Monokuma to supply me with these. He has given me only four, but these should suffice." Maiha then flashed a small smile as her gaze met Sorao's. "With these, we can subdue anyone... unruly with ease."
Sorao shrugged his shoulders with a slightly annoyed look. "No need for such a nasty look. I don't plan to hit anyone."
"Neither do I," Takumi added timidly.
"As if I trusted you!" Maiha said dismissively. "If you cause trouble, I will not hesitate to use them. Do you understand?"
Sorao shrugged his shoulders again, and Takumi merely sank his face into his teddy bear. It seemed that those two had gotten the message well enough.
"Good." Maiha then handed two of the syringes to Faye and Sayua, the latter of whom accepted it with a quiet and half-hearted message of thanks. Maiha handed one over to Haruyuki, but right after, he offered it to Kasumi.
"I believe it's better to let you have it instead," he explained. "I am far from the strongest of men, but I believe that I possess enough strength to physically subdue Sorao or Takumi if need be. But you may need more assistance, even though I believe in your abilities as an athletic thief."
Maiha looked somewhat astonished and annoyed by his answer. "Are you sure about that? She's not to be trusted."
"Whaaaaaaat?" Kasumi said, looking quite displeased. "Oh, come on, even now, you still doubt me?!"
"I can't be faulted for that," Maiha replied coldly. "You may not be as bad as Sorao Mineta, but in the end, I don't feel all that willing to trust a thief with this tranquilizer."
Haruyuki raised a finger. "But, Maiha, it was you who let her watch over Takumi last night, and she proved to be a good night guard, as neither she nor Takumi has done anything concerning."
Maiha let out a scoff of contempt. "Having a tranquilizer is different from acting as a night guard."
"It's too late now, anyway. I've already chosen to give it to her. The reason is simple: I trust her," Haruyuki said with a firm and resolute look. "If I end up being wrong, then you are free to condemn me."
"Haruyuki..." Kasumi said, her eyes full of amazement.
Maiha frowned upon being rebuked so. "I don't care for your tone... but if you're so certain that no tragedy will befall, then fine, let us see whether you are right in your trust in her. If you're wrong, let her future misdeed hang over your head!"
Haruyuki merely showed a pleasant smile in response. "We shall see about that."
"Thanks, Haruyuki," Kasumi said, who looked a little astounded as she put the tranquilizer in her pockets. "Thanks for backing me up."
Haruyuki softly chuckled. "You are most welcome."
Maiha sighed and rolled her eyes before facing Masashi. "I'm sorry that I have no tranquilizer for you, but can I trust you to handle Sorao and Takumi without further assistance?"
"It's all right by me..." Masashi said, figuring that if he were to get into a fight with Sorao, he could probably take him on.
Maiha put away the bag containing her own syringe in one of the pockets of her black dress. "Now, there's one more thing. Do you remember the Simulation Room in the space station? The room in which there were VR machines?"
"The one that we had to go to by taking that crazy roller coaster ride?" Faye said. "What about it?"
Haruyuki raised his hand slowly. "Allow me to wager a guess. The fact that you have brought it up leads to one obvious conclusion: the VR machines have become functional."
"That's exactly right. After Monokuma gave me the tranquilizers, he told me that he had managed to make them operable. We can use them now."
"But why?" Faye asked, looking hesitant already. "What's the point in trying them out? They've been handled by Monokuma, for crying out loud! It may be a death trap for all we know!"
"He insisted that it was a completely safe and harmless VR game, but it certainly warrants caution, yes. In any case, I was also told that if we tried it out, we would be given a reward."
Upon the mention of "reward", the others looked at one another with a mix of dread and curiosity.
"Did he mention what it was?" Masashi asked.
"I'm afraid not. He said that he would tell us once we completed the game."
Sorao shrugged his shoulders with a nonchalant countenance. "Well, it's obvious what the next step is."
"You don't seriously think we should try out that game!" Faye said.
"Nothing ventured, nothing gained. That's the old saw, is it not?"
"Then let us go there after we are finished with our repast," Haruyuki said.
Sometime later, the eight participants set off to the space station and entered the lobby. Instead of going to the stairs to the upper floors, they headed to the set of stairs to the right of the reception desk and descended them. When they arrived at the bottom, they were at the roller coaster station, the starry canvas of outer space in the background. The rocket-shaped train was by the platform, ready to be operated.
"Interesting!" Sorao said, whistling out of amazement. "Didn't think there'd be a roller coaster designed like this."
"Guess we don't need to press that button to summon the train," Kasumi said, pointing at the nearby post with the red button on it. Last time, the train had not been here, so the group had pressed the button.
"But of course. We rode back here last time, and the train has remained here since," Haruyuki said.
Maiha clicked her tongue. "It's ridiculous that we must go through the same ride every time we wish to go to the other side. Just who designed this place anyway?"
"Oh, enough yapping…" Sayua muttered as she got onto the ride. "I just wanna get this over with…"
Sorao smirked. "You know, I like her better that way. She's not as loud and obnoxious as before. Don't you think so?"
No one answered him, to which he responded with a scoff before boarding the train and sitting right next to her, who gave him the evil eye before looking to her left.
After everyone boarded the train, Masashi, who sat in the front car, pressed the START button, and the ride began. Once again, the rapid journey to the other side was full of loops, turns, and screaming, and when it stopped at the other side, it took Masashi and the others a few seconds to catch their bearing.
"Whoa… That was fantastic!" Sorao said. "I love roller coasters! Let's do that again!"
"I don't think so!" Faye protested.
"Besides, you'll have your fun again once we're done with our business in the Simulation Room," Haruyuki added.
"Speaking of that, who has the key to the room?" Kasumi asked. "I'm pretty sure the door was locked."
"Oh, I have it." Masashi took out the two keys to the room. "One's a spare, just in case we lost the other one."
"Masashi, could you give me the other key?" Maiha said. "I see no reason for you to hang onto two keys."
Seeing no reason to argue against her, he handed it to her. Afterwards, the group walked away from the platform to the hallway where the Simulation Room was. The door was locked, even though they had left it unlocked last time; probably, Monokuma had locked it when he had prepared the room earlier.
"All righty, then, go ahead, Masashi," Sorao said.
Masashi gave him the silent treatment and used his key to unlock the door, after which he opened it. When they entered the room, it took a few seconds for Masashi to sense that something was different in this room. For one, the red curtain that had covered much of the room had been moved to the left side of the room. Another difference was that there seemed to be a few wooden crates placed by the walls in the room. But one thing at the right side of the room stood out in particular.
"What's that?"
He pointed at the chest that sat on top of a large wooden crate. The chest itself looked quite plain, but he was sure that it had not been here last time. Furthermore, the front of it looked like it had an electronic lock on it.
"What are you talking about? That's obviously a chest!"
Monokuma appeared, as Masashi had expected.
"Silly Masashi, asking such simple questions!" Monokuma continued chidingly. "Didn't your mother teach you what chests look like?"
"But what exactly is it doing here?" Faye asked.
"Believe it or not… but you know the backstory of this place right? This is all property of Brightmere Research," Monokuma answered. "Well, that chest there… it belonged to a certain man: the founder of Brightmere Research!"
"The… founder?"
Now that Masashi thought about it, they had been hearing about Brightmere Research, but they knew nothing about the one who had founded the company to begin with. He undoubtedly was the one who had thought of this killing game, even if the mastermind running the show was one of the participants. Just what kind of man would think of this twisted experiment? And what purpose did it serve?
Haruyuki leaned down and took a closer look at the chest. "There appears to be a lock."
"And not just any lock!" Kasumi said, also looking at it. "There are no keyholes or numbers on it. It looks like an electronic lock."
Monokuma clapped his paws together. "That's right! The founder came up with a password for the lock, and if you say the password, you can open it!"
"Well, what is the password?" Faye asked.
"Puhuhuhu… Who knows? Well, I do, but do you think I'm just gonna tell you? Where's the fun in that?"
Faye groaned as she looked at the chest anxiously. "I don't know why, but it feels like there's something important in it..."
"Oh, I know that feeling!" Kasumi replied. "Whenever I see a locked door, I always wonder what's behind it. It's part of my nature!"
"Anyway… Now that we're here," Maiha said, looking annoyed already, "what kind of game is in store for us inside these VR machines?"
"Oh, now that I think about it, don't tell me it's one of those 'if you die in the game, you die in real life' kinds of things!" Kasumi said with much panic. "I've read light novels to know what's going on!"
"Oh no no, much as I wish it were so, it's nothing like that," he said. "It's a completely harmless game… Meant to be played with at least six players. I'll explain more once you get inside, so get to it already!"
"All right, then…" Masashi muttered.
There were eight metallic armchairs arranged in a circular format in the middle of the room, each chair connected to the great metallic and rectangular apparatus at the back wall. On each chair was a helmet, and when Masashi sat down and looked at the helmet in closer detail, he saw that there was a small button on the side.
"Now wear the device and just press the button," Monokuma continued. "Then you'll be transported to a wonderful land!"
With some reluctance at first, Masashi eventually wore the helmet, which blocked out his whole sight of the room.
Afterwards, he pressed the button.
In a few seconds, the darkness seemed to shift, and he felt as if he had lost control of his body.
Then there was light.
Everything was white.
A few words in blue appeared:
WELCOME TO
PLANET EXPLORER
The text disappeared, and then the nothingness gave way to color. Soon, the color painted a scene in a forest, a wide blue heaven overlooking the earth. As soon as he realized that he was in this world, he realized that he could move his arms and legs and so looked down at his body. In terms of appearance, he wore the same clothes, the same familiar gray jacket and pair of black pants.
This is… virtual reality?
He looked to his left and right, finding that every part of his sight contained this strange scenery, as if he had been magicked away to a faraway land. Deep down, he was aware that in truth, he was sitting in the Simulation Room and being fed a fantasy by a machine. Still, as he moved his fingers and walked about, he wondered at the fact that technology was possible enough to create such a world as this.
He took in his surroundings some more. Here were four different earthen paths leading out of this area, but when he looked behind him, he saw something that stood out greatly. It was a great vehicle that looked like a spaceship that had just been parked here. He tried opening the door, only to see that it would not open. There was a small keyhole, but he had a feeling that it was merely for show, and he quickly reasoned that the spaceship itself was here for mere decoration, albeit an odd one since everything else looked natural and showed no signs of civilization.
A few seconds later, seven other lights appeared and materialized into his companions.
"Whoa, how snazzy," Sorao said, wiggling his fingers. "Didn't think it'd be that immersive."
"Neither did I," Maiha said.
"I did, actually," Haruyuki said, smiling snidely.
"Uh, good for you, I guess," Faye said, looking unimpressed.
"This place… it's far more detailed than I expected…" Takumi muttered, looking around with curiosity.
"Yeah… Certainly a sight for eyes," Sayua said half-heartedly.
"Hmm..." Kasumi said, clapping her hands once before she adjusted her red masquerade mask. "It looks so real, and yet I still can't help but think if I die here, I'll die in real life!"
"Speaking of that... what activity are we intended to do here, anyway?" Haruyuki asked. "If it's a nonviolent one, we shall not need to fear death."
Just then, a blue light appeared amid the group, and it materialized into an all too familiar sight.
"Puhuhuhu!" Monokuma said. "Liking the graphics? Well, you should, since our graphic designers worked hard on them!"
"Where exactly are we, anyway?" Faye asked.
"According to the official lore, we're on a planet called Nouveau Monde, and it happens to be in a different galaxy."
"That explains the spaceship," Sorao said. "So what are we doing here?"
"You're here to extract the valuable resources needed for your colonies throughout the galaxy to prosper," he continued. "And you have to go through a forest and fight through many monsters!"
"Fight monsters? Then does that mean that we have weapons?" Haruyuki asked.
"That's right! In fact, let me give you them now!"
Monokuma snapped his fingers, and in just a second, something appeared in Masashi's hand. He looked down and saw that it was a sword. The others, however, wielded different weapons.
"Whoa, nice!" Sorao said, showing off his ax.
"Hmm, not too unfitting, I suppose," Maiha said, who bore a bow and wore a quiver holding arrows.
"Wow..." Takumi said, wielding a long wooden staff. "Looks like a magician's staff, if you ask me!"
"It sure does!" Kasumi said, flinging her dagger in the air and catching it.
"I'd rather have that than this, honestly," Faye said, whose weapon was a spear.
Haruyuki lifted up his crossbow. "How interesting... I was expecting more futuristic weapons. I suppose that going with more old-fashioned weapons may be simpler, though."
Sayua said nothing, merely looking down at her metallic pair of gauntlets. Masashi could only imagine how much harm she would have done if she had punched Takumi with those.
"Now, you'll be split up into four different groups," Monokuma pointed at the four earthen paths leading out of this small forest area, "and I've chosen the arrangement!"
A blue screen then appeared right next to Monokuma, and everyone peered at it:
Group 1:
Faye Nirigiri
Group 2:
Masashi Kousaki
Maiha Hanazawa
Sorao Mineta
Group 3:
Haruyuki Kanegawa
Sayua Tomi
Group 4:
Kasumi Ayukawa
Takumi Takamitsu
"Well, now…" Sorao muttered as he glanced at his two companions. "Looks like you're stuck with me now."
Maiha let out an exhausted sigh. "It seems that that's how the die has been cast."
Masashi said nothing. He had had a sinking feeling that he would not like his grouping, and indeed, Monokuma had paired him with the one man whom he wished not to deal with.
Faye let out a small groan. "Oh, I've drawn the short straw... Why do I have to go by myself?"
Sorao sneered. "It seems as if you're frightened! Shaking in your boots, no doubt! I might have foreseen this."
"B-Be quiet, you," Faye said rather weakly.
"Pay him no heed," Maiha interjected, stepping between the two. "What awaits you should be of no problem. You are the Ultimate Patissier, yes? If you can handle the toughest cooking, then this small game should not hinder you."
Faye brightened a little, determination in her eyes now. "Th-That's right…! Yes, you're right, Maiha. Thank you. I'll be sure to keep your words in mind!"
Sorao snorted, looking unamused by that change. "Reliant on your title now for self-assurance? That's pretty pathetic."
"There's one thing to tell you before we set things off," Monokuma said. "As you may know, if all of you complete this game once, then I'll give you a reward! It's nothing special, but as many a game company would say, it's better than nothing."
Maiha looked askance at him. "What kind of reward is it?"
"You want the truth? It's only a few documents, but maybe you'll find them interesting," Monokuma said.
"Documents? Depending on the information, they can be quite informative," Haruyuki said.
"Wow, good insight there, Haruyuki. We never would've figured it out without you," Sorao replied mockingly, to which Haruyuki reacted with a silent but somewhat annoyed expression.
"And one more thing... besides the reward, I'll also give you a bonus!" Monokuma said. "At the end of one of the paths, you get to ask me one question, and I'll give you the correct answer… if I feel like it."
"'Maybe'?" Faye said.
"I'm not gonna answer any question, you know. Don't ask me obviously dumb ones like 'what time is it' or 'when will the next update of this game come out' or 'will there be cosmetics added soon', okay? And I'm not going to tell you where the secret of this world is!"
"What? 'Secret'?" Sorao said, looking intrigued.
"If you look hard enough, you may find a little something that can unlock something else in this world."
"Well, that's awfully undescriptive," Haruyuki said.
"I'm not paid to be descriptive, chump. Think of this as an old-school game where you actually have to go discover things on your own rather than look up a walkthrough for hidden things."
"This is stupid…" Sayua muttered, looking completely uninterested. "I don't feel like playing this. Let me out of here."
This time, Monokuma shook his head as he clicked his tongue in disapproval. "I'm afraid that's not possible. You see, I've adjusted the game such that you can't log out of this game unless you finish it."
"Wh-WHAT?!" Faye exclaimed. "You never mentioned that beforehand!"
"I can't have you do whatever you want! You will play the game, and you will like it!" Monokuma replied with a commanding tone. "Once you reach the end of the path and get your reward, I'll let you log out!"
And just like that, Monokuma disappeared in a blue flash, leaving absolutely nothing of his presence.
"It looks as if we shall have each other for company in the meantime," Haruyuki said to Sayua, who merely replied with a resigned grunt.
"Oh… This is supposed to be completely safe, and yet I keep getting this unnerving vibe…" Kasumi said.
"Don't worry, Lady Kasumi! You have me, and I'll be sure to protect you as best as I can!" Takumi said blithely as he raised his staff, which assurance made Kasumi's face brighten as a small smile appeared on her face.
"Moreover, one of our groups gets to ask Monokuma a question, and he'll answer it for us," Sorao said. "What question should we ask him?"
"I doubt that we actually have much freedom in our choice of questions," Maiha answered. "For instance, I'm quite certain that we can't ask him who the mastermind of this killing game is."
"Still, this may be our chance to get answers about our current predicament," Haruyuki countered. "How about 'what is the purpose behind the killing game'? If we're allowed to ask that, then we may find out the reason behind this rather than engage in endless speculation."
"Good point!" Kasumi said. "I totally agree we should ask that!"
"Fine, whatever," Sayua said, looking completely uninterested.
"Hmm... I guess so," Faye said, looking more uncertain. "Still, what if that question doesn't work?"
"We mustn't tarry here any longer and decide on a list of questions to ask," Maiha said. "If you find that the question doesn't work, think of a different question with your best judgment. Do you understand?"
The others nodded, showing a mix of unease and keenness to move on already. Afterwards, all split off into their own groups, and wandered down the paths designated for them. This left Masashi with Maiha and Sorao to take the second path.
"Follow me," Maiha said as she began treading on the path. "And don't misbehave."
Sorao said nothing but made a mocking gesture with his face, only for him to quickly drop it as soon as Maiha shot him a glare. Masashi merely sighed that he had to spend more time with Sorao and walked astride him as the two followed Maiha.
The path was a wide and straightforward trail through the forest, and at first, nothing seemed remarkable. There was a quiet and soothing ambience playing in the background, but aside from the three, there were no signs of life, which only served to remind Masashi that they were indeed in a virtual world, as if the green health bar at the top right part of his vision were not enough. Even the sound of dirt being trampled upon as they walked became so monotonous that it sounded like a broken record rather than a sign of realism.
Not long after, however, a group of blue lights suddenly appeared in the middle of the path, and they soon materialized into what looked like a bunch of spherical blobs with eyes on them.
"Whoa. slimes!" Sorao said. "Really makes the whole thing feel like an online game, yeah?"
The slimes were about half their size and were merely bouncing around, though Masashi knew better than to think that that would stay.
"I'm afraid I have little knowledge of what you're blathering about," Maiha said matter-of-factly.
Sorao shrugged. "Well, you see, you're supposed to pet one of them on the head gently. Then the slime will give you a very special reward."
"Really?"
"No, no," Masashi said, feeling inclined to interject. "They look like monsters… If you touch them, they'll probably attack you."
"Aww, you've ruined it!" Sorao said whiningly. "I was hoping to see her get hurt."
Maiha scowled. "What did I say about misbehaving?"
"Not my fault you're uncultured about video games."
Letting out a small yawn, Sorao then rushed toward the slimes with an ax and swung it with great might. The swing felled three of them at once, after which the slimes glowed and disappeared.
"Amazing! No wonder people like using axes!" Sorao said. "I am invincible!"
As soon as he said that, twelve more slimes appeared and swarmed around him without mercy.
"AAAAAAH! HELP ME!"
A slime leapt onto Sorao's face, and he tried to grab it off. Sorao's health bar appeared above his head, and the green portion was slowly receding to the left, which showed that he was taking damage. Masashi wielded his sword and stabbed a few of the slimes, and when he attacked a slime, it caused its health bar to appear as well as how much damage it had taken. Unlike the ax, the sword seemed to have less strength, so it took a few more strikes to slay the slimes.
After Masashi killed a few more, Sorao, who had regained his sight and his movement, cried out, "Watch out! Behind you!"
When he turned around and saw the last remaining slime flying toward him after it had sprung from the ground. Just as Masashi raised his sword up in an attempt to defend himself, an arrow shot through the slime and slew it. The shot had come from Maiha, who now wielded her bow.
"Not too bad, was it?" she said with a satisfied look on her face as she walked toward them. "I never would have thought that my brief dabbling in archery would be of use in such a situation as this."
"Isn't it nice to be able to kill things without punishment?" Sorao said.
"I don't care much for your wording, but I admit, there is a bit of delight at this form of entertainment," she replied. "If this is what you commoners do, then I suppose there's no harm in partaking in it."
Seeing that there were no more slime monsters for now, the three continued treading on the path. For a few seconds, all was silent, save for the ambience playing in the background. But then Sorao spoke up.
"Say, Maiha," he said. "I've been wondering… you have a dance partner, right?"
As soon as he asked that, the annoyance on her face disappeared.
"Yes… One does not do ballroom dance by oneself, of course," she said. "My partner's name is Mafuyu Hideyoshi. He's a wonderful dancer, a wonderful man, a wonderful partner. Someone to whom the ignorant plebeian masses do not give their due appreciation."
"Oh, really?" Sorao said, smiling. "Why so?"
Maiha paused for some time as the three walked on.
"Unlike me, he has never been given the title of Ultimate Ballroom Dancer," she said. "The agency in charge of the title has no desire to acknowledge his efforts… and neither does the public. It's an utter disgrace that a phantom thief should be recognized as an Ultimate, but not him!"
"Does it really matter that much?" Masashi asked.
"Of course it does! Titles are an acknowledgment of effort. They are ever so important…" she continued. "Because I am an Ultimate, and Mafuyu is not, the unwashed masses have placed far more focus on me… They may acknowledge him for a moment, but in the end, they don't care a whit about the struggles that he has gone through."
"Does he care?" Sorao asked.
"He doesn't… and that's what pains me," she said, her voice getting softer and softer. "I wish he acknowledged that he's worthy of the Ultimate title. I wish he didn't have to stick fast to his denial. Then he would be truly happy…"
"My, my… Such lofty feelings from you," Sorao replied. "That's why you love him, isn't it?"
Maiha said nothing at first, but for the first time, she looked truly defenseless, as if she had been wearing a mask before the world the whole time.
"That's right… I love him," she answered softly. "I love him so much that I want him to see the true worth of his work. I don't understand why he continues to insist that titles and ranks are not important. They are what separate the worthy from the unworthy… He is worthy, and therefore, he needs to be acknowledged as such."
Sorao let out a soft chuckle, a twisted grin on his face. "It's clear to me now. Your love is 'incomplete'."
"'Incomplete'?"
"Yes. If you ask me, love is love only if each person understands the other. But your love for him is incomplete because you fail to understand Mafuyu on even the most basic level."
Maiha glowered at him. "What do you know about relationships, anyway?"
"Quite a bit. In fact, let me begin with this universal truth: relationships are transactional in nature," Sorao answered boldly. "A relationship by definition involves at least two parties. And each party must understand the other if the relationship is to blossom. I can't say how much Mafuyu understands you, but it's clear you don't understand him at all. You don't understand why he doesn't care about status. You don't understand his beliefs and values. Thus, your love is shallow and incomplete."
Maiha frowned, clenching one hand into a fist. "That's ridiculous. My love for him is not 'shallow and incomplete'. In fact, have you experienced love?"
"As a matter of fact, I have," Sorao said, the wickedness in his expression waning. "Futaba Inoshishi, the third life that this killing game claimed… she loved me back, and I loved her back. That's the basis of a good romantic relationship."
"Wait… you actually loved her?" Masashi said.
Masashi recalled that after the motive involving the Memory Bank, Futaba had forgotten the fact that she had loved a dancer girl, and as a result, her love was directed to Sorao, her second love. Sorao had chosen not to tell her about her lost darling, and Masashi had agreed to keep it a secret, as Sorao had argued that telling her would only make her kill in order to regain her memories.
"Yes. At first, I only wanted to get closer to her as part of gaining an advantage in the killing game," Sorao said with an earnest tone. "But really, she was a nice charming girl, even if a bit awkward in a few places. Who couldn't like her?"
"But… you lied to her!" Masashi protested, finding his claim to be outrageous. "You never showed this part of you to her!"
"And? She understood me well enough even with my persona. Even if I lied to her about myself, her love for me was genuine, and I returned the favor naturally. But don't get me wrong. My love may have been arisen in response to hers at first, but very quickly, I found my love for her to be more than that. She truly was 'the one' for me, I thought."
"Even if it involved lying to her about her sweetheart?"
"What? You lied about that?" Maiha said, looking astounded.
Sorao scoffed, looking slightly annoyed now. "That was simply part of what Lady Inoshishi had asked me to do! Making sure that she shouldn't fall to temptation! I did everything right! Unfortunately, Abraham managed to trick her and kill her! When I saw her corpse, I was shocked, honest… Oh, why did Abraham have to take her away from me?"
Maiha stared at him curiously. "I'm quite fascinated that you… feel that way about relationships."
"For all my life... I've been thinking about how to use people. That's how I've realized that relationships are arbitrary to begin with," Sorao said, returning to his natural cool self. "And when it comes to love, I've had many girls yearning for me. Oh, it's a lovely thing to be yearned for."
"And there's no such thing as an unconditional relationship for you."
It was then that Sorao shook his head. "You think too lowly of me. Of course I think there are some unconditional relationships. One of them is family."
"Family? Care to explain yourself?"
"What's special about family relationships is that they are concrete and real. We are born on this earth connected to very few people, and it is those people with whom we have an objective relationship. A mother and her son have a real bond that can never be broken. It's right in the blood. I believe that's the main reason why cultures around the world acknowledge how heinous it is that someone should kill a member of his family. Deep down, we understand that someone who kills one of his own kin also kills a part of himself."
Maiha looked at him with bemusement for a few seconds. "With how much of a scheming opportunist you've turned out to be, I'd never imagine that you've thought this much about it. You are by far the most extraordinary man that I have ever met."
"'Extraordinary'..."
It was then that Sorao let out an incredibly devious laugh, as if he had been flattered to high heaven.
"That's right! I'm glad you understand now! I am not a monster! I am... an extraordinary man."
"Extraordinary...?" Masashi said.
"Yes. I'm not one of those empty human beings, whom you think of as ordinary people. Extraordinary men like me, for the most part, can transgress usual moral limits as long as it is for the good of mankind. And I have used my skills and talent to make millions of people happy, however trivial you may think it is. And I knew that Tanjiro would have revealed my secrets and ruined me if I had let him be. That's why I did not hesitate to plot his demise, even though it went in a far different direction from what I had foreseen. Do you understand now?"
"I believe... you've said enough about the matter already," she replied, looking quite uneasy around him as if fearing lest she succumb to his madness if she listened further. "Let's not speak of this anymore…"
For the next few minutes, the three walked through the trail silently, only speaking when they were interrupted by mobs of slimes ambushing them. At first, it took some time to get rid of them, but after a few more attacks, the three found a few ways to get rid of them more easily.
Eventually, the path ended at a wide open quarry that was beset by rocky shelves and had several rocks that bore what looked like gemstones of sundry colors. There was a much greater slime sitting at the other side of the entrance and wearing a golden crown.
"No surprise that it's the boss. One hefty king that is," Sorao said. "If we defeat it, it'll be the end of the game, I guess. Ready?"
"We simply need to try the same tactic as before," Maiha replied. "I shall provide backup from afar, and you two will handle the beast up close."
"Right…" Masashi said, wishing to get this over with.
After Maiha rushed off to a part of the quarry where she would not be easily seen, Masashi and Sorao rushed to the king slime, which, as soon as it noticed them, leapt and bounced around to other parts of the quarry. They chased the slime around, but it proved to be surprisingly agile, and neither of them could strike it with his weapon.
"Sheesh! It just won't work with us!" Sorao said, panting. "Maiha! Mind shooting at the thing?"
Maiha did as she was asked and shot an arrow at the evasive beast. The shot struck true on the forehead, which caused the slime's health bar to appear above it. The slime changed its course and leapt toward her. Seeing it turn its back on them, Masashi saw his chance and smote the slime with his sword. The slime squealed and changed its course once again to chase after him, only for Sorao, who had sneaked behind it, to smite it with his ax.
"It seems to be working!" Sorao said. "Let's try that again!"
Sorao told Maiha to shoot it again, and once again, the slime fell for the distraction, which allowed Masashi and Sorao to land a few more blows at it. They repeated this a few more times, and eventually, the slime sprang high and landed at a certain part in the quarry. This time, however, it did not move, and its health bar was greatly diminished.
"Looks like it's catching its breath…" Masashi said.
"Is it? It has no mouth," Sorao replied.
"Just slay it already!" Maiha ordered.
Sorao shrugged casually. "No need to rush. All right, Masashi, let's attack it together."
"All right."
Having readied their weapons, Masashi and Sorao charged at the weakened beast, which leapt up one last time. They swung their weapons at the beast and landed their blows right before it landed on the ground. Afterwards, nothing happened, not a sound coming from it, but Masashi saw that the slime's health bar was now completely gone. Eventually, the great slime shone a light that grew brighter and brighter. In an instant, the beast disappeared wholly, as if it had never been part of this world at all.
"Phew! All done!" Sorao said, smirking.
Maiha approached the two. "That certainly was quite an… experience. I never would've thought that I should find myself battling a slime monster."
Just then, Monokuma appeared out of nowhere.
"Well done, quest complete!" he said. "That was the last part of this version of Planet Explorer! Thank you for beta testing it for us without payment. What did you think of it?"
"For one, it's kinda weird that there's only one kind of monster the whole time," Sorao replied with a critical tone. "You couldn't add goblins or aliens or something?"
Monokuma scoffed. "Yeah, well, didn't feel like working too hard on an older version."
"What? Is this only an early version of Planet Explorer?" Maiha said.
"Why, yes, the actual game has more features, but we wanted to keep it nice and simple this time, see?" Monokuma answered. "Anyway, since you're done, you're now allowed to log out of the game. Just say 'Activate Menu!' and then click the button that says 'Log Out'."
"Wait a minute," Sorao said. "Isn't there supposed to be a reward? You know, the part where we can ask you a question?"
"Oh, that? Well, sorry to say, but as I said before, that's the reward for only one of the paths," Monokuma said, chortling. "And as you can see, this isn't it!"
"So which path is your bonus reward on?"
"Nope, not telling!" Monokuma crossed his arms in a X-shape to show that he would not say any more. "Now log out already. There's nothing else for you to do here. Unless you want to search for the secret of this virtual world, which I mentioned a while ago?"
Maiha shook her head profusely. "That secret sounds stupid and worthless. I want nothing more to do with this game."
"Even though you found it fun?"
"If it's from you, then yes."
Monokuma groaned as he lowered his head drearily. "Aww… That hurt, you know."
He sank into the ground, disappearing as he would in the real world.
"Let's log out already," Maiha said. "I don't wish to tarry here any longer."
The three of them activated their menus with the incantation that Monokuma had told them. There, on the bottom of the menu magically floating in the air, was a small button that said "Log Out". Once Masashi clicked it, a prompt popped up asking him whether he was sure.
The moment he clicked "yes", everything turned black. For a few seconds, he saw only darkness, unable to move at all. Not long after, he felt that he had regained control of his body and moved his hands to take off the helmet covering his sight.
"Ah…"
The cold gray scenery of the Simulation Room filled his sight as he slowly grasped the fact that he was now back in the real world. He rose from his seat, placed the helmet down on the chair, and saw that Sorao and Maiha were also up and about.
"Ah, good old real life!" Sorao took in a breath of air. "Didn't expect my day to involve playing a VR game."
"It looks as if the others are still playing it," Maiha said.
Indeed, all the others were still sitting in their seats with their helmets on. Their bodies showed no signs of movement, though from a close look at their mouths, Masashi could see that they were unconsciously breathing. Even when they were in the VR world, their bodies worked as they should in the real world.
"You don't think they can hear us, do you?" Sorao asked.
Maiha shook her head. "I don't think so. The VR world is completely separate from the real world, yes? Then nothing that goes on in each world is perceived by the other."
"So… what now?" Masashi said.
"There's nothing left but to wait," she answered. "Monokuma will give us the reward as soon as we all are done with the game. The others are still going through their paths."
"What do you think made us finish ours so quickly?"
"Probably the fact that there are three of us, so things went by more smoothly," Sorao answered. "Don't tell me that we have to wait here."
"You will wait here, certainly," Maiha said, pointing at him. "But it has just occurred to me that I can use this time to investigate the control room nearby."
"The control room? Oh, yeah, this room was once a stage room, wasn't it?" Sorao replied, shrugging his shoulders. "What's there to check out?"
"I'd like to see whether there's more to the room than we first saw," Maiha answered. "Masashi, stay here and keep an eye on Sorao. Ensure that he is up to no mischief."
"All right," Masashi said plainly, feeling no desire to protest.
Maiha turned around and left for the door, leaving Masashi and Sorao in the room by themselves. For a while, neither of them said a thing, only looking at the other with a careful and wary eye. Masashi had nothing to say to Sorao, as he had heard enough about his worldview from him.
Eventually, however, Sorao opened his mouth, a curious gaze on his face.
"The earlier conversation with Maiha about her love has reminded me of something," he said with a devious tone. "Masashi… have you ever felt love?"
Masashi said nothing, but the question was enough to make him tense, as if Sorao had just threatened him.
"Oh, no need to answer. I already know."
Sorao sneered.
"You loved Mari, did you not?"
Masashi said nothing once again, but this time, he felt compelled to speak.
He had to answer.
He had to affirm the truth.
"I… I did," he said without thinking. "I loved her… I loved Mari."
"How would you describe your love?"
"My love for her… it was genuine."
"'Genuine'? Ah, 'genuine', you say!"
Sorao let out a chuckle. "It was so genuine that you never said so to her in her last moments!"
Masashi flinched as his mind raced back to that awful moment.
"Masashi... this is my last wish," she said. "Please… never stop loving the world."
Masashi could not say anything.
He had many things that he still wanted to say to her.
But he said none of them.
He only nodded.
Mari smiled.
Masashi could not say anything for a few seconds, feeling sorrow smite his heart. But soon, the words returned to him.
"I… I wanted to say that to her!" he said, trembling a little. "But I…"
"Because you were too weak to say it to her?" Sorao said. "Wow, how shallow your love must be if you could not even muster the words!"
Masashi bit his lip in silence, wishing that he could find a way to retort him.
"And you know what else is shallow? Your understanding of her," Sorao said. "Even on the most basic level, did you understand her beliefs? Did you understand her belief in destiny?"
Masashi looked at him confusedly. "How... How do you know about that?"
"Monokuma told me about it the night of her execution. I had many, many thoughts after seeing her demise... So I asked Monokuma about what drove her to accept her death so readily. He told me about how she had survived being struck by lightning, only to feel that death was always shadowing her. What led to her worldview was sad, really.
"But I understand it. She had cheated death, so she naturally felt no fear toward it. To her, dying was simply a long-delayed reunion.
"That's why when she realized the truth about the 'antidote bottle' from which Hikari had drunk, she knew that it was her destiny to die that night.
"But you never understood her. The whole time, you were whining and begging for her to stay with you.
"Even in her last moments, you still clung to that selfish wish of yours.
"You did not accept that she had chosen to reveal herself out of her belief in destiny.
"As a result of your lack of understanding, you could not say 'I love you' to her."
Masashi had nothing to say.
Quite frankly, everything that Sorao said sounded like nonsense.
Yes, that was right. It was all nonsense. Sorao just wanted to hurt him.
And yet...
If it were simply nonsense, why was he not saying anything to Sorao?
Masashi had to admit that he still did not understand Mari's worldview of destiny. Why was she so accepting about it?
Even when he had apologized to her after yelling at her about her worldview, he had never come to understand it. He had merely apologized for the effects of his words. He had never seen how exactly she could live her life while letting fate dictate everything.
"It's clear, is it not? Your love for Mari is like Maiha's love for her beloved Mafuyu.
"It lacks understanding.
"It's shallow and incomplete."
The moment Sorao said those words, Masashi stopped.
He wanted to believe that Sorao was wrong. He wanted so badly to tell him that he was wrong.
And yet, he felt ever so inclined to think that Sorao was right: his love for Mari Anzai was incomplete.
It would have grown if she had never died, but with her death, his love for her could never rise to a new level and become complete.
But that only raised the question: who forced it to stay incomplete in the first place?
It was the killing game that took Mari's life, but a certain man had caused it all.
A certain man had made a choice that ultimately would cause Mari to leave this earth.
At that very moment, something sprang in his mind.
"Why...?
"Why have things come to this?
"You've done nothing wrong!
"It shouldn't have happened!
"That man had no reason to hurt you!
"So why...
"Why is he still unpunished for what he did?
"What kind of world would allow it to happen?"
Yes, these words were the words that he had remembered yesterday morning.
He had no idea what exactly they meant.
Just who was "that man"?
But even though he did not know their meaning, he felt the sentiment behind it.
Masashi hated "that man".
What "that man" had done, he did not know. But he hated him nonetheless.
And the hatred that he bore toward "that man" resonated with the hatred that he had for Sorao Mineta.
Sorao Mineta was alive and well.
Sorao Mineta was the one who had caused his love for Mari to be forever incomplete.
Sorao Mineta was the one who had destroyed all possibility of a normal and peaceful life with her.
What kind of world would allow Sorao Mineta to be unpunished for what he had done?
And when Masashi thought back on those words once more, a certain feeling that broke all sense of attachment left within him arose.
The feeling led to a certain thought.
It was a thought that he understood at once.
It was a thought that felt familiar for some reason.
It was a thought that reigned supreme in his mind.
I hate the world.
"It's sad, is it not?" Sorao said, ignorant of what Masashi had thought. "In the end, in your love for Mari, you were selfish—"
It existed for only a split second.
But the small sound that existed in that small timeframe marked the great decision that Masashi had made.
It was the sound of his punching Sorao.
The strike on his face landed so hard that Sorao stumbled back and tripped. He now lay with his back on the floor.
"Wh-What the…?" Sorao said, eyes wide. "M-Masashi… you…"
Without saying a word, Masashi sprang upon him, sat on his chest, and seized him on the throat.
"Guh…!"
Sorao, all too aware of what was now happening, tried to remove Masashi's grip on his neck with his hands, but Masashi refused to move and felt nothing as if he had been filled with a strength that let him ignore Sorao's pitiful attempts.
For all the emotions that Sorao had shown throughout the killing game, this was the first time that Masashi saw fear in his eyes.
It was true, genuine fear, as if he were looking at a beast hungering for his flesh.
"Aah… Aah…"
Masashi pressed harder.
Pain continued to contort Sorao's face.
Sorao kicked his legs helplessly, and the longer Masashi had his hands on him, the more quickly his fears vanished.
Who cared if he were caught in the act?
At this point, he saw nothing worthwhile left in a world that had allowed Sorao Mineta to get away with his injustice.
He wanted nothing more than to see his destruction.
"Gah…"
Yes, the wretch was close to his death.
It would take only a few more seconds.
It would all be over.
It would all be over.
It would all be—
"GWAH!"
This time, however, the cry did not come from Sorao.
Instead, it came from Masashi himself, for something had just stung him on the back. This caused him to loosen his grip on Sorao's neck and turn around. To his shock, what had stung him was a syringe filled with a clear liquid, which was soon injected into him. It took him a second to recognize it as a tranquilizer. Masashi looked up and saw that Maiha now stood before him, an utterly horrified look on her face.
When had she come in? He had not heard her at all.
But now he saw it. He had been so focused on Sorao that everything else in the world had been blocked out. He must have ignored the sound of her footsteps.
"Masashi… Why…?" she said, aghast.
He tried to say something.
But nothing came to mind.
What could he say, anyway?
"G-Get away from me!"
Seeing his one chance, Sorao shoved Masashi aside and rolled away. He quickly stood up and backed away from him, breathing heavily while rubbing his neck. Masashi only looked up at the fearful musician silently.
Many thoughts entered his mind, and they were all the same:
I've failed…
I've failed...
I've failed, I've failed, I've failed…
Shortly thereafter, however, Masashi began to feel disoriented and drowsy, the world moving rapidly around him. The tranquilizer's effects had already begun to set in. Masashi heard his name cried out a few times, with each utterance sounding more and more warped.
The moment he tried to stand up, his consciousness began to leave him as well, and the next thing that he knew, he found himself lying on the floor.
I've… failed…
That was all that he thought before his sight turned to darkness.
Hello, everyone! I hope that you're doing well. I'm certainly excited that I'm making more and more progress with the story!
Anyway, it finally happens: Masashi reaches his breaking point and tries to kill Sorao, only to be tranquilized by Maiha at the last minute, so Sorao barely escapes with his life. Next time, Masashi faces the consequences of his actions. See you then!
